How to Calculate the Weight of Timber

Written by bretn

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A scale shows the amount of force that an object on the scale exerts, or its weight. (scale image by Pontus Edenberg from Fotolia.com)

Weight is the force that an object exerts on its surroundings. To find weight, we look to Newton's law, and find that force = mass * acceleration, or F = ma. To find the weight of a stationary, cylindrical piece of Oregon pine on the earth's surface, we need to know its mass and the acceleration of gravity, which is 9.8m/s^2. We can now see that F = ma is equivalent to weight = mass * gravity, or W = mg.

Skill level:

Moderate

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Things you need

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Instructions

1

Find the density of the material; according to Engineering Tool Box, the density of Oregon pine is 530 Kg/m^3.

2

Find the volume of the wood by multiplying pi * radius^2 * height. The radius and the height should be in meters.

3

Multiply the volume by the density to get the mass of the object.

4

Multiply the mass of the object by the acceleration of gravity to find the weight of the object.

Tips and warnings

Take exact measurements to ensure that your calculations of the weight are accurate.